| Atlanta Falcons | |
|---|---|
| Title | Senior assistant |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1958-09-08)September 8, 1958 (age 67) Camden, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | York Suburban Senior(York, Pennsylvania) |
| College | Dickinson |
| NFL draft | 1981: undrafted |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| |
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
Coaching | |
| |
| Awards and highlights | |
| |
Steven C. Hoffman (born September 8, 1958) is an Americanfootball coach who is the senior assistant for theAtlanta Falcons of theNational Football League (NFL). He won threeSuper Bowls with theDallas Cowboys of the NFL and one national championship at theUniversity of Miami. He also was a member of theWashington Federals in theUnited States Football League (USFL). He playedcollege football atDickinson College.
Hoffman attendedYork Suburban Senior High School, where he competed in football and baseball. He accepted a football scholarship fromDickinson College, where he playedquarterback,running back,wide receiver,placekicker andpunter. As a senior, he received All-Mid-Atlantic Conference honors at punter. He was also a member of theRaven's Claw Society.
In 1983, hepunted for theWashington Federals of theUnited States Football League in 3 games before being cut. He also went to training camp with theWashington Redskins in 1981 and 1983, theSeattle Seahawks in 1984 and theNew Orleans Saints in 1985.[1]
In 1985, he began his coaching career at theUniversity of Miami as the kicking coach. He was a part of the 1987 National Championship team under head coachJimmy Johnson. He tutored future NFL punterJeff Feagles.
He also spent two springs in Italy as offensive coordinator of the Bellusco Seahawks in 1987 and the Rho Blacknights in 1988. In the fall of 1988, he coached atMiami Sunset Senior High School.
In 1989, he followed head coachJimmy Johnson and joined theDallas Cowboys as the kicking coach. In 1990, he added quality control duties to his responsibilities, coordinating offensive and defensive scouting of future opponents, while providing internal analysis of the team's own tendencies.
In the 1990s, the Cowboys organization felt they could findplacekickers andpunters throughfree agency, without the need of paying a premium and adversely impacting thesalary cap, so they allowed talented and productive players to leave, instead of signing them into long-term contracts. In 16 seasons, he was entrusted with helping to find and develop young talent. He scouted and coached seven rookie or first-year free agent kickers, that includedKen Willis,Lin Elliott,Chris Boniol,Richie Cunningham,Tim Seder,Jon Hilbert andBilly Cundiff.[2] He also signed and coached 5 rookie or first-year free agent punters, that includedJohn Jett,Micah Knorr,Filip Filipovic,Toby Gowin andMat McBriar. His specialists established 15 separate club records.
He won threeSuper Bowl titles with the Cowboys. His contract was not renewed at the end of the 2004 season.[3]
Hoffman took a year off from coaching in 2005, during which he acted as a consultant for several NFL teams and ran his own business.[4] In 2006, Hoffman served as assistant special teams coach under special teams coordinatorJoe DeCamillis and head coachJim Mora.
In 2007, Hoffman was hired as assistant special teams coach for theMiami Dolphins. He worked under first-year head coachCam Cameron and special teams coordinatorKeith Armstrong. He contributed to kickerJay Feely setting the single-season franchise record for field goal percentage at 91.3. He also instructed rookie punterBrandon Fields.[5]
In 2008, he was one of only two coaches initially retained after Cameron's firing byTony Sparano. He helped to develop rookie free agent kickerDan Carpenter, who went on to make 21-of-25 field goals (84.0%), including a Dolphins rookie record 14 straight.
In 2009, Hoffman was hired by theKansas City Chiefs to be thespecial teams coach for the first time in his career. In his first year, thespecial teams units improved significantly.[6] He contributed to rookieRyan Succop becoming an NFL starter and tying for the highest field goal percentage (86.2%) by an NFL rookie since 1970. PunterDustin Colquitt set a new single-season team net punting average (40.8).[7]
On February 3, 2012, Hoffman was hired as special teams coordinator of theOakland Raiders by new head coachDennis Allen.[8] In his lone season with the team,placekickerSebastian Janikowski achieved a 91.2% field goal percentage and was 25-for-25 inside of 50 yards for the first time in his career.[6] He was relieved of his duties at the end of the season.
On February 18, 2013, Hoffman was hired as an assistant special teams coach for theTennessee Titans.[9] On October 3, 2016, he was promoted to special teams coordinator afterBobby April was relieved of his duties.[10] In 2016,placekickerRyan Succop had his best career field goal percentage (91.7%) and was 18-for-18 inside the 50 yard line.[6] In January 2018, Hoffman was not retained as special teams coach for the Titans. He was replaced byCraig Aukerman in head coachMike Vrabel's new coaching staff.[11]
Hoffman was hired to be the Senior Assistant for Special Teams for the Atlanta Falcons on January 23, 2021.[12]